Art of coloring wood.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. WILLIAM Aueus'rUs HALL, or NEW YORK, u. in,ASSIGNOR T0 AMERICAN MAHOGANY COMPANY, A CORPORATION or MAINE.

ART or coLo'ame woon.

1 State of New York, have invented or discovered certain new and usefulImprovements in the Art of Coloring 00d, of which the following is aspecification. Y

' This invention has for its object to produce from some of the cheaperor more common varieties of hard woods, such as birch,

beech or maple, ornamental or variegated woods of highly attractiveappearance and somewhat resembling in colors some of the high-pricedvariegated tropical woods, such I as tulip wood and koa, so that theyare very desirable for interior finish. This result is effected bytreating the wood with two or more solutions'which have differentdegrees of capillary activity or different dialyzing effects; and thusthe solutions having the highest degrees of capillary activity willquickly penetrate into the interior portions of the wood, and will colorthe same: accordingly, .while the solutions having less capillaryactivity will not penetrate so deeply and will impart to the wood theirown special/colors in zones or streaks. These different solutions will.preferably be mixed together, so that the wood may be treatedsimultaneously with all of them, or 'the wood may be separately treatedwith each solution, as may be found most desirable.

As an instance of one manner in which the invention may be carried intoeffect I will mention a inixture of solutions'such as picric acid,ferious sulfate and nigrosin. These three are all acid solutions, and ithas been discovered that picric acid has the highest degree of capillaryactivity, penetrating all portions of the wood, whether hard or soft,and staining it a bright yellow. Ferrous sulfate has the next highestdegree 'of capillary activity, entering into all but the very hardestparts of the wood; and this solution, which, by itself, would stain thewood a silver gray, produces, in combination with picric acid, a grassgreen color. Hence wood permeated with a mixture of picric acid andferrous sulfate would be colored green, with some streaks or lines ofyellow in the very hardest portions of the wood, Nigrosin has very muchless capil- Specification .of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 6, 1907.

, Patented Nov. 2, 1909.

Serial No. 400,989.

lary activity than the other two solutions mentioned, and as it stainsthe wood black this color will appear only in the more porous portionsof the wood; so that when the three solutions mentioned are mixedtogether and the wood is treated with the mix ture it will be colored instreaks of yellow, green and black. These different colors will blendinto each other more or less, so as to give a pleasing appearance whichrenders the wood very desirable commercially.

In place of nigrosin, in the mixture referred to, hypernic extract, orany other coloring matter which dissolves in weak acids may be used. Ifhypernic extract be used in place of nigrosin, in the solution referredto wood with yellow, green and red streaks would be produced; and thesedifl'erent colors, running together or blending, more or less, produceeffects which are highly ornamental and very pleasing; In carrying theinvention into effect the wood is first thoroughly seasoned, and is thenplaced in a closed receptacle and subjected to the action of a vacuum ofpreferably 25 inches or higher, for the purpose of extracting the airtherefrom and rendering the same absorbent. The mixed solutioncontaining ingredients of varyin capillary activity will then beintroduce into the chamber of the receptacle; and to expedite thecoloring operation a high pressure may, if preferred, be applied to thechamber of the receptacle, to force the coloring ingredients into thewood quickly; and as these different ingredients, as above suggested,have different degrees of capillary activity or penetration, variegatedcolored eflects, as described, will be produced.

The invention is not to be understood as .,being limited to the use ofany particular chemicals or solutions for the purpose of producing woodsof variegated colors, as many varieties of diiferent colors may beproduced by the use of a great variety of chemical solutions ofdifferent capillary activity, each solution producing a certain ing thewood with a solution Comprising incuts of different capillary activityor difi'ergredients of difi'erent capillary activity or cut penetratingqualities. a 10 different penetrating qualities. In testimony whereof Iafiix my signature,

2. The herein-described process of proin presence of two witnesses.ducing variegated colored wood, consisting WILLIAM AUGUSTUS HALL. intreating the wood, in a closed receptacle, Witnesses: and with the aidof vacuum and high pres- C. M. SWEENEY,

sure, with a solution comprising ingredi- J. D. KLINGE.

